For many years, coal has been utilized as a source of fossil fuel for accomplishing heating. It is well known that direct utilization of coal particulate for heating purposes results in waste because large amounts of hydrocarbon constituents contained in the coal are lost due to improper combustion. Various apparatus has been developed over the years to assist in accomplishing more efficient combustion to thereby minimize energy losses of the coal.
It is also well known that coal contains gaseous, liquid and solid hydrocarbon constituents, each having specific value in industrial applications. Processing systems have been developed for the purpose of separating these gaseous, liquid and solid constituents but, for the most part, these processes and the apparatus performing the processes are of relatively inefficient nature. It is therefore desirable to provide a method and apparatus for accomplishing separation of gaseous, liquid and solid hydrocarbon constituents wherein the method and apparatus utilized function substantially automatically to accomplish efficient separation.